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Monday, August 1, 2011

Chili Burgers

This is a re-hash of something I posted on The Verdant Dude last summer. But since I made them again this weekend for my family, and I made them exactly this way...I figured what the hell. The new food blog could use a good burger recipe. And this, my friends, is one fabulous freakin' burger.

The idea of the "chili ingredients inside the burger" actually came from a Rachel Ray cookbook that my Mom has. Yeah...don't judge me. But I give it my own twist and make it into a Juicy Lucy. What's a Juicy Lucy? Read on, readers....read on.

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Earl's Semi-Famous Chili Burgers (Juicy Lucy-style)

2 lbs ground beef - I use 80/20 so that it's extra juicy.

1 medium-sized onion - finely diced

2 or 3 large green chilis - seeded and finely diced

4 or 5 jalepeno peppers - seeded and finely diced

4 tbsp tomato paste

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

Now you can really add or subtract whatever spices you like here. You dig on oregeno? Add some of that stuff! You don't dig on cumin? Don't add any of that stuff! It's your burger. Do with it what you will. The above recipe will make 8 quarter pound burgers or you can put on your man-boots and make 'em the way I make 'em. How is that? Well, lemme tell ya!

First off, I like to prepare this the day before I eat them. The spices mix with the meat in the fridge over night and make for a more delicious meal. And we are all about the more delicious meal. But you don't have to. This last time I made them I did it all right then and there, and they still tasted great.

Dice up your onion, jalapenos and your green chilis and saute them with some olive oil if you like. Butter if you prefer. Cook them up for a few minutes until the onions are nice and translucent. Then set them aside until they cool to room temperature. Be sure to drain the excess oil and liquid first. Drain them really well. You don't want your burger to be a liquidy mess, do you?

After the veggies have cooled, you are gonna need a big mixing bowl. Dump the ground meat, the veggies, the...well all the ingredients into it and start mixing. Use a big wooden spoon if you like, but you're eventually gonna have to get your hands dirty so why not start now? Hmmm? Get in there and make sure all the ingredients are folded in with the meat. The tomato paste will bind the burger together very nicely.

Once it all looks uniform and yummy, you can start making your burger patties. I like to take about a quarter pound of the meat mixture and make it into a large flat patty. But these aren't your normal quarter pound burgers, no? Because now we are gonna kick it up a notch. You see, we are gonna stick a slice of cheese on top of that raw patty. Cheddar, American, Monty Jack, whatever. Then you are gonna take another quarter pound patty and make a cheese sandwich outta that sucker. That's right...a slice of cheese INSIDE the burger. Intrigued? I am.

Now you've got a giant half pound burger that is all ready for the grill. Make sure you pinch the circumference of the burger so that it becomes all one patty. Making each half of the burger thin is key so that the burger cooks uniformly. A few minutes on one side, flip it carefully, then a few more minutes on the other side. Whatever temperature you normally prefer for a burger. What do I have to teach you how too cook a burger the way you like it now?

When done right you get a juicy, cheesy, spicy, delicious burger that is unlike anything that you have ever had before. So juicy that it doesn't need ketchup or mayo or mustard or whatever the hell you normally put on a burger. But feel free to fly that freak flag that you own. I topped my with another slice of cheese (hehe), some sliced green pickled tomatoes and some normal red ones.

The result was glorious! Just be warned. You may need a nap soon after finishing one of these bad boys.

Enjoy!

PS - The only sad part of this post is that I didn't take any pictures of the glorious burgers I made on Sunday. We were too busy cramming them into our faces! Sorry...won't happen again. Or will it?